Admissions and Fees

Admissions

We aim to make our setting accessible to children and their families from all sections of the local community through open, fair and clearly communicated policies and procedures.

If you are interested in securing a place for your child, please complete our enquiry form and email it to stmonicaspreschool@hotmail.co.uk or telephone 01925 269258 and ask the pre-school administrator to forward an enquiry form to you. The enquiry form formally registers your interest in the pre-school.

We are a term-time only setting and are open from 8.45am to 3.15pm, Monday to Friday, for children from 3 years to school age.

Although children can start at our pre-school the day after their third birthday, the Early Education Funding (EEF) is not available until the term following a child’s third birthday meaning families are expected to self-fund their child’s sessions during the interim period.

We are flexible over the number of sessions children attend. However, we ask that all children attend for a minimum of 2 sessions per week which we feel helps with the settling in process.

Places and sessions are confirmed with families the half term before they are due to start with us. At this stage, your child will be allocated a key worker and a home visit and a couple of settling in visits will be arranged for you and your child.

Where sessions are oversubscribed, the following admissions criteria is applied:

Children in care.

Children who in their first year to which the application relates, have an elder sibling in attendance at St Monica’s Catholic Primary School.

Consideration is also given to the number of sessions required and those children attending for more than one academic year.

Where all other factors are equal, children living closest to the setting receive priority.

Where sessions are over-subscribed, alternative available sessions will be offered to families. A waiting list for the oversubscribed sessions is maintained by the pre-school administrator.

Please note that an enquiry form must be completed in order to register your interest in our setting and a place at St Monica’s Pre-School does not guarantee a place at St. Monica’s Catholic Primary School.

For more information, please refer to our Admissions policy.

Fees

A child becomes eligible for the Early Education Funding (EEF) the term following their third birthday.

All children are eligible for the universal 15 hours EEF per week up to a maximum of 570 hours per academic year. This is regardless of parental/carer’s income or working status.

Since September 2017, working parents, who fulfil the eligibility criteria, are entitled to an additional 15 hours EEF per week (called ‘extended entitlement’), up to a maximum of 1,140 hours per academic year.

Where children exceed their funded sessions, families are invoiced for the additional sessions termly as follows:

Session fees

AM session (8.45am to 11.45am)

£13.50

PM session (11.45am to 2.45pm)

£13.50

Lunch session (11.45am to 12.15pm)

£ 4.00

Optional session (2.45pm to 3.15pm)

£ 4.00

Full Day - 8.45am to 3.15pm

£31.00

Snacks

In addition to the above fees, we ask families for a voluntary donation of 50p per session per child to cover the cost of a healthy snack.

Snacks are available for the children to enjoy at a time of their choice throughout each session. Fresh water and semi-skimmed milk are also available throughout the day.

Voluntary annual donation

We also ask families for a voluntary donation of £30 per annum per child to help cover all enrichment/non-funded activities such as the celebration of multi-cultural festivals and food tasting etc.

Late pick up fee

We ask that parents adhere to the session times. Failure to collect your child at the specified time will result in a £5 charge for the first 5 minutes late plus an additional £5 charge for every 5 minutes late thereafter.

Payment of fees

All fees are payable termly in advance to St Monica’s Pre-School.

Parents are invoiced at the start of each term ie. September, January and April and fees are payable in two instalments. The payment deadlines are clearly noted on the invoice.

Fees are charged at all times, irrespective of whether or not a child has attended their allocated sessions.

Refunds cannot be made in respect of sessions booked for which a child is absent either through illness or holiday.